


Warm Enough

by cinderfell



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Huddling For Warmth, Perc'ahlia Festival of Happiness, kind of?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-29
Updated: 2016-09-29
Packaged: 2018-08-18 14:40:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,283
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8165476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cinderfell/pseuds/cinderfell
Summary: An unexpected snowstorm rolls through and Percy and Vex are locked out.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dancer4813](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dancer4813/gifts).



> written for the perc'ahlia festival of happiness of tumblr! the prompt dancerwrites gave me that i chose to use was "cuddling to keep warm in the rain/snow (at a rendezvous point, or because they're both locked out or something)"  
> as a minnesotan i am Very Aware of the hell that is getting locked out during the winter, so i went with what i know lmao.

“Shit.”

That definitely wasn’t what Vex wanted to hear as she stood shaking outside the door to Percy’s house. The man in question was fumbling with the door, his head bent. Snow had settled across his head and shoulders from their walk up the driveway, almost unnoticeable against his pale hair. Behind both of them she could hear the roar of wind as it whipped snow across everything in sight. 

She reached out a hand to touch his shoulder. “What’s wrong?” 

Slowly, he turned to look at her, his cheeks flushed from the cold and… embarrassment? “I don’t know where my key is.” 

“What?” 

He cleared his throat, nervously glancing between her face, the locked door, and the snow falling down in sheets outside of the little area they were huddled next to the house where the roof gave them a bit of shelter from the snow. “I don’t know what happened to my key.” 

Well. That was a problem. 

“Percy,” she chided, unable to keep her voice from dropping down into the tone she often used on Vax when he forgot things. “I told you that you had to get your key chain replaced.” 

“I thought I’d be better off without it since I always lose the key chain anyways!” 

“And without your key chain you always lose a key whenever we go out somewhere!” 

_“Fuck,”_ was Percy’s only reply as he frantically started patting himself down. His face settled into a grimace as he did so, brows pulled tight. She would have to be blind not to see how frustrated he was with himself. 

Ah. Well, frustrated Percy was never any fun for anyone. She quickly shrugged off her annoyance, instead shifting to a more playful tone as she squeezed his arm. “Darling, if this is your way of getting me to cuddle you for warmth then I can tell you that just asking would be a lot easier.” 

“It’s not,” he protested, rifling through his pockets for the missing key. 

After another minute of searching, he slowly let his arms fall limp against his sides as they both looked at each other. Vex’s arms were wrapped tightly around herself, the light jacket she put on earlier doing very little to protect her from an unexpected snowstorm. Percy’s jacket wasn’t much better. 

He seemed to notice the way she shook and for a split second his hands rose up to his jacket as if he were about to peel it off and drape it around her shoulders. It wouldn’t be the first time Percy had done it, much to her complaining about him catching a cold if he kept it up. However, one glance outside into the snowstorm made him slowly drop his hands again. He was chivalrous and often placed her well being above his own, but that didn’t mean he was an idiot. Even he realized nothing good would come from stripping off his jacket in this mess. 

“I don’t suppose you know how to pick a lock?” Percy was suddenly very tired. She didn’t blame him. 

“I’m not Vax,” she replied with a snort. He was the one who rebelled against their father with petty theft and trespassing when they were younger. Vex, for the most part, had simply distanced herself from her father and the judgement as much as possible before they were able to set out on their own. 

“I’m going to check if the back door is open,” he said with a grimace. They both knew it wouldn’t be. Percy and Cassandra were incredibly uptight about making sure all the windows and doors in their house were locked at all times. Vex didn’t blame them. He cast one more look at the front door before passing her his car keys. “If it’s not open I can text Cassandra and see when she’s coming home. We can wait in the car.” 

Vex snatched the keys and was climbing into the car’s passenger side before he could even blink. She loved Percy dearly, but she also loved not losing fingers to frostbite. 

She started the car up quickly, immediately reaching a gloved hand forward to fumble with the heat. The dial was cranked up all the way already, but she could still feel the cold ache of winter in her fingers. With a sigh, she sat back in her seat and watched Percy make his way out of eyesight. 

After a couple minutes Percy came back around the other side of the house and climbed into the driver’s seat with a shrug. She was so busy glaring at that damned front door that she didn't notice him reaching for her until she felt the pressure of fingers on her shoulders through her coat and the feeling of Percy trying to gently pull her close to him. “Come here.” 

Well, he didn’t have to say it twice. She scooted as close as she possibly could to him, tucking her head under his chin. His arm came around her slowly, the back of his hand settling on her thigh while his fingers carefully took hers. She could barely feel him between the gloves and the cold but she appreciated the gesture nonetheless. She’d never object to holding her boyfriend’s hand. 

Vex tilted her head back to look at him, perhaps to say something, but all thoughts were cut short as a laugh escaped her throat. His face was flushed red from the cold, his glasses completely fogged over. She doubted he could even see through them. 

“What?” His eyebrows shot up at her sudden laugh. 

She reached up, arms straining as she tapped the side of his glasses with a finger. “Your glasses are all fogged up, Percy.” 

“It’s hot in here.” 

“Thank you, I try my best.” 

There was a moment of silence before Percy slowly went, _“wow.”_

“You look cute, is what I’m trying to say.” 

He squeezed her fingers gently in response, his voice lowering as he spoke again. “I’m really sorry about losing my key.” 

“Don’t worry about it, darling. I’m not upset.” She let her head drop back down with a soft laugh. She felt some of the tension in his body relax at that. 

Somewhere between that and him turning on the radio so the soft sounds of a radio host filled the car, she felt herself drift off. She always found it easier to slip off to sleep around him, and apparently being curled up in a car while frozen down to her bones didn’t hinder that at all. It didn’t last very long, though. 

“Vex.” His voice was soft as he nudged her awake. She made a soft noise of protest, attempting to bury her face even further into him. “Cass is here.” 

At the mention of the younger De Rolo, she lifted her head from his chest (a little too quickly, as she felt her head spin and saw little black dots appear in her vision for a moment), squinting at the younger woman looking back at her through the car window. Suddenly a bit self-conscious, she pulled her hand from Percy’s to wipe at the corners of her mouth. Luckily she hadn’t drooled all over herself and Percy while she was out. Percy knew she sometimes drooled when she slept. It was one of the less flattering things about herself that became hard to hide after they started getting serious. She wouldn’t have cared if it had been Percy, but the idea of Cassandra seeing her covered in her own drool definitely made her feel a little embarrassed. 

Cassandra had a scarf pulled up over her nose but besides that she was about as well off as they were. The snowstorm had hit hard and fast on a day that had only predicted light snowfall. She raised up a keychain in one gloved hand and pointed at it with the other before turning around and walking up to the door. 

Vex slowly pulled herself away from Percy, adjusting the parts of her hair that had been messed up in her sleep. “How long was I out?” 

“Only like twenty minutes.” He reached out and brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear. If she weren’t already shivering from the cold, the fabric of his gloves brushing against her cheek would’ve sent much more pleasant shivers down her spine. “If it weren’t for the snow Cass probably would’ve been here sooner.” 

She glanced out past the snow and watched as Cassandra fumbled with the front door and, sure enough, it cracked open and the younger woman slipped inside quickly. “Well, God bless Cassandra de Rolo.” 

“Mhm,” he hummed in agreement, reaching up to adjust his glasses and smooth down his ruffled hair. 

The walk from the car up to the house felt like it took an hour, every step slowed by the snow that had piled up. They clung to each other's arms as they trudged up to the door, half for warmth and half because Vex was scared she’d step on a patch of ice hidden by the snow and fall, and if she went down then Percy was coming down with her. 

Vex practically stripped in the entryway as the door shut behind them, peeling her jacket off and flinging it to the floor instead of bothering to hang it up. The boots came off next as she kicked them ungracefully into a corner, Vex dancing from foot to foot as she tried to move away from the freezing cold wet spots on the floor that were quickly soaking through her socks. She flung her gloves off on top of her crumpled jacket. 

Percy, on the other hand, stepped out of his boots right by the door and calmly put his jacket on the coathanger, stuffing his gloves into his pocket. He glanced from the discarded boots to her jacket as if he were about to say something, but instead he just shrugged. 

“Coffee?” Cass asked as Vex practically collapsed at a stool in the kitchen, Percy following not far behind. 

“Please.” Her voice creaked as she responded. Percy gave a short nod. 

Before long they all had mugs before them. Compared to outside, the house was practically a sauna. None of them complained. 

Vex wrapped her hands around the hot mug, practically purring as she felt the left-over coldness melt away. Percy’s glasses were on the counter as he wearily rubbed at his eyes. Despite the coffee practically scalding Vex’s mouth on the first sip, Cass had already finished most of her first cup. Vex knew coffee addicts when she saw them (she herself was one) but Cassandra was on another level. 

It was nice right up until the point where they all jumped as an angry buzzing noise filled the cozy kitchen, eyes darting to where Percy’s phone lay next to his coffee. She watched him fumble with his phone at the sound, picking it up off the island as he did so. After a moment, he laughed shortly before turning the phone towards Vex so she could see too. The picture was a simple shot of Percy’s house key laying on the familiar, beat-up, green couch in the twins’ apartment. The texts directly beneath it were from Vax. 

_hey de rolo did you forget something lol_

_pls find somewhere warm so u and vex dont freeze to death_

“I found somewhere warm, alright.” She placed her chin on her hand and smiled at him, waggling her eyebrows as she did so. He didn’t respond to her comment, however the way that the tips of his ears suddenly flushed red was enough of a response for her. 

“Gross,” Cassandra said as she wrinkled her nose, taking one last look at the two of them before picking up her mug and walking into the living room. Percy snorted. 

“Well, at least I don’t have to get a new key.” 

“You really do need another key chain though, darling.” She reached over, fingers curling into the spaces between his. He squeezed her hand gently in response, tucking his phone into his pocket as he did so. 

“I know,” he agreed slowly, turning on the stool so his knees pressed against her’s. 

“I’d say I’d get you one for Christmas but, honestly, I think leaving you hanging without one in the meantime would be a mistake.” In the next room over she heard the tv turn on, the soft sound of the weatherman’s voice floating into the kitchen as he warned citizens to stay inside if possible and avoid the roads. Vex found herself being extremely grateful for Cassandra managing to get home as fast as she did. “If this weather clears up tomorrow we can run to the store and get you one.” 

He rolled his eyes. “I’m sure I’ll lose the one I get now in time for Christmas anyways.” 

“Oh, I don’t doubt it. For someone so smart, you sure do lose a lot of things.” 

“It’s part of my charm.” That coaxed a big grin out of her. 

She grabbed his other hand in her’s, raising it to her lips as she pressed a brief kiss to the back of it. “Everything about you is charming.” 

He snorted, but the red in his ears had spread down into his cheeks. “I feel like you might be a bit biased, Vex’ahlia.” 

“Probably," she agreed, her grin softening into a gentle smile as her lips still brushed lightly against their joined hands as she spoke. After a moment he slowly moved their hands down to her lap and leaned forward, pressing the softest kiss against her lips. 

Cassandra made a gagging noise from the living room.


End file.
